


(Two Times Four Equals Four to the Power of Two Divided by Two Equals) What Shouldn't Have Occurred

by soniagiris



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Character Death, Death, Deathfic, Drabble Sequence, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt No Comfort, POV Alternating, Spoilers, Wordcount: 1.000-5.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-27
Updated: 2018-01-27
Packaged: 2019-03-10 07:22:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13497386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soniagiris/pseuds/soniagiris
Summary: One by one, they breathe out.





	(Two Times Four Equals Four to the Power of Two Divided by Two Equals) What Shouldn't Have Occurred

**Author's Note:**

>   * **warnings in the end notes; spoilers for the entire game**
>   * beta provided by the wonderful vee @ikuzonos, who doesn't even know p5, yet checks my stuff ♥
> 


1.

"Hey, where's Morgana?"

Even though it was Ann to ask, Lavenza meets Akira's eyes and holds them. She doesn't seem to ever blink, he notices with that faraway, logical part of his mind, the one that let him keep his cool during the interrogation. 

"You have my apologies," she finally says, her voice cool but gentle, "but he is gone. He has fulfilled his destiny."

 

* * *

 

2.

It takes Morgana less than a second to notice that the Palace's atmosphere is different. Buzzing. He exchanges a quick glance with Akira, who's already pulled out his knife, and confirms he isn't the only one.

"Something's wrong?" Ryuji nudges their leader; Akira shakes his head.

"Yes," he replies tersely. "We need to check it."

Ann makes a worried sound in the back of her throat. "Do you think that... it has anything to do with Kitagawa-kun?" They're already walking towards the museum's entrance, all four of them brandishing their weapons. Zorro hums in Morgana's mind.

"Perhaps," Akira says. 

"He does have the Metanav," Morgana murmurs after a while when they're sneaking through the garden. He thinks about the rage and despair in Kitagawa's expression upon seeing the Shadow version of Madarame. "He could've entered."

"But without a Persona, or a way to defend himself..." Ryuji doesn't finish, simply jumps onto a pillar, wincing. "Dammit."

"Knowing the truth about what his mentor did could cause him to be reckless," Akira says and slips inside the Palace through the open skylight. Morgana is next.

There's a red, smudged handprint on a wall, and some of the paintings are ripped apart. The air smells of rust. When Morgana looks around, he sees more bloodstains. There's no need for anyone to speak up to make them split up to investigate, and Morgana already knows what happened when he hears Ann scream.

 

* * *

 

3.

They're tired, Akira pushing them forward while promising 'just one area more and we're done', and Ryuji reckons that's probably why things are ought to go to shit. At least the Palace isn't nearly as hot as Futaba's — but he prolly shouldn't say that to Haru. 

Then the oversized salt-shaker of a robot ambushes them and turns into two of those freaky Shadows he remembers from Kamoshida's palace. Akira calls the creature Belphegor. What the eff.

The set-up is classic — Akira, Morgana, Yusuke, and Ryuji. Futaba's Persona flits over their heads, and, from the sidelines, Makoto shouts out Shadows' weaknesses. One of them casts an ice spell — Akira falls onto his ass with a swear, Yusuke shrugs it off, and both Morgana and Ryuji flinch. 

Before Akira can pick himself up and change to a different Persona (poor dude, Ryuji muses, of course he had equipped the one with an ice weakness), the other Shadow's beady eyes focus on something behind the Thieves' back — and then it aims another curse upright.

At Necronomicon, Ryuji realizes, but, before he turns around, there's already a shrill yelp. He sees a black-and-green blur plummet into the machinery bay, and then he hears the familiar, sickening crunch of breaking bones.

"Futaba!" Akira abandons the battle and jumps after her — Ann takes his place and sets the Shadows on fire without a word — with Makoto following close by. 

She was pretty high up when she fell, Ryuji thinks, sorta like a dumbass, as the panic starts bubbling up in his gut. Really high up. 

 

* * *

 

4.

"Perhaps we should escape," Haru says softly. Ann shrugs, unsure of what to say — well, not exactly, because, yeah, they should, with Akira gone, they really shouldn't stay in Tokyo — but they're still here even after a month, for some reason. 

"Our train's gonna be here in two minutes," she says instead, struggling to change the topic. Haru purses her lips, but doesn't call her out on it, just gets up from the bench and brushes off her skirt. The platform is full of people, mostly bored businessmen in dark suits, coming back from work. Ann sighs and pushes through them until she's standing almost by the edge, Haru by her side. 

When she looks around, she catches one man’s eye and instantly glances down. But, when she raises her head back up, he's still sizing her up. When she stares back, his gaze moves to Haru, then returns to his phone. 

An announcement sounds off, about the train to Harajuku arriving at the station — and, soon enough, there's the familiar noise of it coming. Ann turns to Haru to ask her if they could go for crepes—

Before she can open her mouth, the man she noticed before steps closer and pushes Haru onto the tracks, under the advancing train.

 

* * *

 

5.

During a summer three years ago, when Sensei was gone for two weeks, there had been a terrible heat wave. All pupils crowded in the studio, putting up cheap box fans and listening to music coming from a cheap radio, bared skin coated in sweat and paint. During one afternoon like that, when it was his turn to pose, Yusuke had taken notice of one song, an American one. He doesn't remember its title, but, somehow, committed to memory that the radio announcer remarked about this tune being inspired by the sounds of a moving train.  _ How interesting, _ he recollects thinking that. 

"Four more stops."

As he opens his eyes, Yusuke feels Futaba, pressed snugly into his side, stir and straighten up, just like everyone else in the compartment. Except for Makoto, she's already awake and studying them with a tired look in her bloodshot eyes.

"Four more stops," she repeats, "and then we need to find a place to rest."

"And after that?" Ryuji sounds a bit dazed as he rubs his eyes. Yusuke thinks about checking the hour, but then realizes he had to left his phone behind too.

"Well...!" Makoto falters, and Ann lets out a little, humorless chuckle. "I suppose we'll rent a car and go meet with—" she checks her notes (Akira's notes), then continues, "with Iwai-san's associate."

Morgana, who is stretched out on Haru's lap, glances up. "You should sound more confident, Queen," he chides, and Yusuke silently agrees. 

"Perhaps you're right." She touches her forehead briefly. "I'm not quite used to— to being the one in charge."

"You shouldn't be," Futaba murmurs. That's the first time she has spoken up since yesterday. Since the news.

As the conversation, if it could be called this term, dies down, Yusuke looks out of the window, barely perceiving the sights, and tries not to focus on how hollow he feels. 

The train keeps darting forward with hardly a sound.

 

* * *

 

6.

It happens so quickly Makoto doesn't have the time to do— to do anything, to call out to Joker, or warn Fox, or prepare her recovery fan. 

Marin Karin. 

(It has hit her before, yes, and every time was as scary as the first one. Her muscles clench up, eyes open wide, and her grip on her knucklebusters tightens. Her body, the first and last thing she'll possess, is no longer hers. And the Shadow grins as it commands her limbs).

Fox straightens up from his usual position, then, in stilted, jerky movements, reaches to rip off his mask. Goemon manifests behind him, and Makoto dumbly thinks that it's strange that the Persona even appeared. 

Bufula. 

Ice rushes at Panther, looking off inside the corridors of Shido's Palace, and hits her straight on. She falls down, and Fox is a flash when he jumps over to her and raises his katana.

It takes less than ten seconds. Blood splashes onto the velvety carpet. Only then Skull smacks Fox over the head with his own fan. Makoto catches Joker's eyes. Notes, with this fucking distance clouding her brain, that he never looked so terrified, then shakes her head and casts Freila. The Shadow disappears.

Fox looks down at Panther — still, already still, and neither Mona nor Joker can bring dead people back — and says, confused, "What on Earth has happened?!"

 

* * *

 

7.

"I'm so sorry, Nijima-san," Akira says, still not straightening from his deep bow. Futaba looks over at Nijima-san, who's steely-faced but for the tears rolling down her flushed cheeks. "I'm so, so sorry. If we had known your sister would be targeted, we would have done things differently. You have our — my most sincere apolog—"

"Tell me one thing, Kurusu," Nijima-san interjects. She holds back a sob, yet, when she continues, her voice is even. "Did my sister's death help your cause? In any way? Was there a semblance of sense in it?"

Futaba has to glance away, because she hates how stricken Akira looks, but that means she sees Sojiro, standing behind the counter and paler than death, which kinda makes her want to die.

"I don't think so, Nijima-san," Akira says finally.

 

* * *

 

8.

When Futaba's sobs don't die down, Haru puts an arm around her shoulders and pulls her closer, while Makoto does the same to Ann. Akira and Yusuke stare down at the ground, and Morgana keeps shaking his head and muttering to himself. His whiskers shake. Why is she noticing all of that?

"We should tell his mother," Haru says as she's gently stroking Futaba's hair. "Her not knowing what has transpired would be..." She swallows, hard. "It would be unfair."

"I don't know about this," Makoto disagrees. Akira gives her a questioning look. "It takes a few years for a missing person to be declared dead, and, even after they pass, there's still hope." She shakes her head, and Ann glances at her, teary-eyed and thin-lipped. "We shouldn't take it away from her."

"It's a false hope, however," Yusuke chimes in, his voice shaky at best. He's still holding the legislator's pin. "Were Sakamoto-san to find the truth after relishing the spurious belief, her—"

Akira stops him mid-sentence by barely raising his hand. "I side with Haru. Ryuji's mother deserves to know what happened to her son."

Despite being agreed with, Haru doesn't feel — she doesn't feel much. "He died a hero," is what she says in the end and lets go of Futaba as she steps away. 

"He shouldn't have died at all!" Ann cries. 

**Author's Note:**

> a/n
> 
>   * **cw: character death** (obviously) **; blood; violence; explicit description of breaking bones; murder; brainwashing.**
>   * **comment/kudo if you read/liked,** it means really a lot c:
>   * those of you who have my twitter may remember one thread where i raged about writing a scene inspired by the junkyard one from lis:bts, but it'd happen in madarame's museum, in an au where yusuke didn't have his awakening, because he already developed a shadow. oh, and he wouldn't use a baseball bat. he'd use his own hands :)
>   * tbh i planned to write a long-ish fic about an au where akira doesn't survive the interrogation and the remaining thieves eacape from tokyo, but, eh, low motivation.
>   * remember kuyashi? well, some twitter peeps got pissed off at me cos of it, so the logical step was killing all of the thieves, not just one. :)
>   * hmu on twitter/tumblr! i recommend twitter bc i'm asking for prompts for a drabble collection over there c;
> 



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